


Next Time

by GhostOfTasslehoff, Hanakoryu



Category: Death Note (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Collaboration, Deathnotetober, Digital Art, Father-Son Relationship, Flashbacks, Gen, Gun Violence, Learning hard lessons, Near Death Experiences, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Self-Defense
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-21
Updated: 2020-10-21
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:35:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,902
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27131230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GhostOfTasslehoff/pseuds/GhostOfTasslehoff, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hanakoryu/pseuds/Hanakoryu
Summary: Watari teaches L how to shoot a gun after a case goes very sideways. L remembers the other lesson he learned in the process.An art (Hanakoryu)/fic (GhostOfTasslehoff) collaboration for Deathnotetober!
Relationships: L & Watari | Quillsh Wammy
Comments: 12
Kudos: 39





	Next Time

**Author's Note:**

> Sections written completely in italics are flashbacks.

There was a fly buzzing around the room. L knew that he should be paying attention to Watari, knew that this was important, but all he could focus on was _that damn fly_. He tracked its flight along the ceiling with wide eyes, gnawing compulsively at his fingernails.

“L.”

A warm, gentle hand rested on L’s thin shoulders, and he startled at the sudden contact, his gaze darting jerkily to the side as he flinched instinctively away. Watari’s sigh was audible as he removed the offending appendage, and L cast his eyes down to his feet, shoulders slumping. “Sorry, Watari,” he whispered, clenching his hands into fists at his side.

“Don’t apologize,” Watari said quietly. He shifted the rifle at his side and pointed to the hand gun that still rested on the wooden shelf. “Perhaps a more hands on approach through each step would suit you better?”

L worried his bottom lip with his teeth, his gaze flitting from the gun to Watari’s face as he considered. _Maybe it will keep me from getting distracted._ He nodded mutely, dutifully making sure his ear muffs were on correctly before stepping forward to gingerly pick up the gun. The muffled bubble of silence he found himself in was only broken by Watari’s voice, each instruction delivered in a slow, even tone.

As L practiced his grip, letting Watari make minute adjustments as they went, he couldn’t stop the memory from playing in his mind.

* * *

_L dropped the file on the desk in front of him with a disgusted snort, letting the papers go everywhere. “Is this a joke? Based on the information we’ve gathered, it is obviously-” He jabbed his finger downward, sliding a picture of a largely unassuming looking man, complete with slight shoulders and unkempt dirty blonde hair, free from the mess. The most distinctive feature about the man was his heterochromia. “-THIS man. How does he keep evading jail when he made it so easy to pinpoint him? I’m disappointed.” Two days. It had taken him TWO DAYS to have his informants finger a suspect. But it didn’t make any sense that their killer was still at large._

_“Sir?” Watari took the photo and turned it over, finding the man’s name, Jerry Atwell, on the back. “Shall I contact the local-”_

_“Immediately.” L shoved petulantly away from the desk and announced, “I’m going for a walk.”_

_“That may not be wise with your suspect not apprehended yet.”_

_L glanced down at the photo in Watari’s hand again and shrugged. “I’ll be careful. Besides, no-one will notice me once I’m on the street, and I’ll recognize Atwell if I see him. I want a latte.”_

_Watari hesitated, but finally acquiesced with a soft, “Call me immediately if you see anything suspicious.”_

_L nodded and shrugged into his oversized jacket, not bothering to tie up his shoelaces. He kept an eye out for suspicious activity during the entire trip, the only excitement coming when he got jostled by a harried looking business man on his phone, shoving his way into the hotel lobby ahead of him. “Excuse YOU,” he murmured under his breath, glaring at the man’s back in distaste and checking to make sure his latte hadn’t spilled. He was nearly up to his floor before it occurred to him that he hadn’t heard the elevator doors chime for the rude man._

_Worry bloomed in his chest as he hastily reached for the button panel, but the car shuddered to a stop. He slowly exited the elevator, heart pounding as he tried to recall the man’s face, but he was SURE the features had been different than those of Atwell’s. An associate? Perhaps Watari had been right after all._

* * *

“Your hands should fit together, just like a puzzle.”

L made a soft noise of frustration, feeling awkward and far too gangly. “My fingers are too long,” he mumbled, glaring with a sullen pout at Watari. The old man was standing comfortably with his hands wrapped around another handgun, demonstrating for L how it was _supposed_ to look.

“Speak up, L.”

“I need a bigger _gun,_ ” L complained louder, scowling and nodding down at his botch job. “I can’t get it _right._ ”

“That’s because you’re gripping it too tight. You need to relax.”

L began muttering a litany of curses under his breath, stealing glances at Watari’s hand position again. The thrill of getting away with cursing without Watari reprimanding him (for once) helped, until finally he _had_ it, looking up at Watari with a proud hint of a smile. This time, he didn’t flinch as badly when Watari touched his shoulder, repositioning his stance.

“Remember, now, the trick is to aim with your dominant eye.”

L swallowed hard and nodded grimly, bringing the gun up determinedly. He was _going_ to get this right.

* * *

_The photos of the crime scene were gruesome, but that wasn’t what shook L. The face of the business man he’d seen the previous evening stared up sightlessly at him, mouth wide open as if in a scream. “That’s him,” he whispered, carefully keeping his voice even as he clutched his shins. He could feel Watari’s worried gaze on his back, prickling over his skin like the legs of a spider, and he had to resist the urge to shudder. ‘Show no fear’, Watari always said, but he couldn’t see how he was supposed to keep CALM in this situation. “That’s the man from the lobby. And Atwell’s MO.” Anyone else would say he was being overly paranoid, because how could the man have possibly known who or what he WAS, let alone where he was STAYING? But somehow, L KNEW that the dead man had doubled back from wherever he had gone to see what floor L had gotten off on. “Do we have anything on him, Watari?”_

_“Frank Massey. He is a con man in the city, an information broker, well known to those IN the know. My own spies reviewed their notes of Atwell’s behavior, and on a second viewing, it’s obvious that he realized early on he was being followed.”_

_L nodded miserably, hunching further into his chair and hugging his legs tighter to himself._

_Watari’s voice was soft and serious as he continued, “Our best guess, seeing as Massey… could not tell us anything directly, is that Atwell contacted Massey to find out who was tailing him, and that led him to this hotel.”_

_“And I was the only person going in or coming out who didn’t fit.” And it had only taken ONE indulgent decision to put himself in danger, L realized._

_“Yes.” The silence stretched between them for a long moment. “I recommend we leave the city. Let the local police catch Atwell. There is a city wide APB out on him. We still did the job we were hired to do.”_

_“Yes.” L didn’t look at Watari, grateful when the man left the room to start preparations on his own._

* * *

“I know this seems counter-intuitive, but you’ll know you’ve got the correct sight picture when your _sights_ are in focus and the target is blurry.”

 _That only works when you’re not trying to hunt another hunter._ L’s hand quivered, and he had to squeeze his eyes shut, exhaling harshly when Watari’s hand found its way to his shoulder again. It was warm, heavy and _real,_ grounding him.

“Are you okay L?” Watari’s voice was concerned; L could practically _see_ in his mind the slight furrow that would inevitably be creasing the man’s brow. “We can stop if this is too much for you right-”

“No.” L took a deep breath and brought the gun back up, training his sights on the target. “No. I’m _fine._ ” He knew he wasn’t fine, but he couldn’t show weakness. _I HAVE to be better than I was._

“Then let’s continue.”

* * *

_It happened fast, and without warning. L had been entirely correct about Atwell making things easy. The man was incredibly intelligent, as it turned out, but much more interested in GLOATING than covering his tracks. He’d only evaded jail so long because he was a dirty fighter and took aggressive risks - and the trail of bodies he had left behind him weren’t carefully planned or connected so much as opportunistic and tying up loose ends. And he must have been watching the hotel room VERY closely._

_Watari left the hotel room for merely five minutes. L nearly didn’t leave._

* * *

“You’re ready, L. Remember to breathe, now.”

L’s heart pounded hard in his chest as he dutifully took a deep breath, counting them in and out to keep himself steady. _It’s over. You’re alive. Be BETTER for next time._

* * *

_The smashing of L’s bedroom window alerted him to the new presence, and it was purely coincidence that saved him as shock made him fall out of his chair, a heavy brick sailing through the space he’d previously occupied._

_“YOU’RE the detective the cops hired to catch me? Oh that’s RICH.”_

_L started to push himself up, eyes wide and trained on the man._

_“You’re just a fuckin’ KID!”_

_L’s fingers closed around something heavy, and he didn’t even stop to check what it was before flinging it with all his might at Atwell. It connected. Atwell screamed in pain, his features twisting with rage. And L scrambled out of the room, his instincts screaming at him to stay low._

* * *

“Safety off? Good. Now press the trigger straight back.”

In and out, L breathed, squeezing the trigger as he focused on his sights and _not_ the cruel green and brown eyes of Jerry Atwell that hovered in his mind’s eye.

* * *

_A gun shot rang out above L’s head, and he ducked into the kitchen, taking shelter behind the breakfast bar, fumbling in his pocket for his phone. It wasn’t there, and he pressed a hand to his mouth to stifle the horrified whimper trying to come out._

_“You got spunk, kid. Throwing your mug at me, I think you broke my nose.” Atwell’s steps paused, and he began laughing. It wasn’t a hysterical laugh - it was the laugh of someone who had just struck gold and all the more worrying for that. “WOW, you must be REAL new to detectiving. Who is Watari?” His voice was coming closer._

_L could HEAR the moment when Atwell figured out where he was, the tell-tale click of the safety going off accompanying that horrible laughter. He wanted to throw up._

* * *

"Once you feel the resistance, you're doing it right. Keep going."

L nodded, gritting his teeth against the memory and squeezing harder. _I will NEVER make that mistake again._

* * *

_“I’M Watari.”_

_Near simultaneous gunshots rang out, and for one terrifying moment, L couldn’t hear anything. Then something heavy thumped to the floor. L pressed his hands harder against his mouth, eyes wide as he heard footsteps ring through the room. They sounded like Watari’s, but… Two more gunshots sounded in quick succession, and he sagged in relief, nearly sobbing when Watari said in a measured, worried voice, “You’re safe now, L. Let’s go.”_

* * *

Watari dropped his hand to L’s shoulder and squeezed, saying in a quietly proud tone, "Well _done,_ L."

L lowered the gun and exhaled shakily, staring at the bullet hole he'd put in the target, situated where a grown man's head should be. _Next time, I'll be prepared._ He prayed there wouldn't be a 'next time'.

**Author's Note:**

> It’s never made explicit in the story, but L is 18, in both the flashbacks and in the present training session.
> 
> This collaboration was made for DeathNoteTober day 20 prompt Gun.  
> Art by Hanakoryu ([ikathemadhatter](https://ikathemadhatter.tumblr.com/) on tumblr)  
> Fic by [GhostOfTasslehoff](https://ghostoftasslehoff.tumblr.com/) (same on tumblr)


End file.
